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Apr. 05, 2018 | 08:44 AM

'A point of crisis': Trump directs troops deployed to border

In this June 19, 2008, file photo, in front of a new five-mile section of border fencing, Master Sgt. Ken Clemens, a member of the 200th Red Horse Air National Guard Civil Engineering Squadron from Camp Perry in Ohio, works on a new guardrail along a new road at the border in Nogales, Ariz. U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen said Wednesday, April 4, 2018, that Trump and border-state governors are working to "immediately" deploy the National Guard to the U.S.-Mexico border to fi

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Asserting the situation had reached "a point of crisis," President Donald Trump signed a proclamation directing the deployment of the National Guard to the U.S.-Mexico border to fight illegal immigration and drug smuggling.

The announcement came hours after Trump pledged "strong action today" on immigration and a day after he said he announced he wanted to use the military to secure the southern border until his long-promised, stalled border wall is erected.

Trump has been frustrated by slow action on building his "big, beautiful wall" along the Mexican border -- the signature promise of his campaign -- as well as a recent uptick in illegal border crossings, which had plunged during the early months of his presidency, giving Trump an accomplishment to point to when he had few.

Over the past 12 years, presidents have twice sent National Guard troops to the border to bolster security and assist with surveillance and other support.

Nielsen said the effort would be similar to a 2006 operation in which President George W. Bush deployed troops to help U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel with non-law enforcement duties while additional border agents were hired and trained.

Trump first revealed Tuesday that he'd been discussing the idea of using the military at the border with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.